The American flag is a sacred symbol of the freedom that the United States of America has. In 1777, the American flag was made an official ensign for America, and to this day, the only thing that has changed about the flag is the number of stars on it. The flag is not just a symbol for the people that live in America, but also for the people that live in other countries. People in other countries that wish to immigrate to America see the flag for what it truly represents, freedom. Although, the American flag is not just a symbol of freedom, it is also a symbol for America a nation. In Gerald R. Webster 's article, "American Nationalism, The Flag, and The Invasion of Iraq," Webster discusses the symbolic nature of the American flag. In Neil A. Lewis 's article "Arguments on Flag Burning Heard," he describes the U.S. Supreme Courts perspective on the burning of the American flag. Douglas W. Kmiec interprets two very famous cases in regards of the burning of the American flag in his article, "In the aftermath of Johnson {Texas v. Johnson, 109 S. Ct. 2533} and Eichman {United States v. Eichman, 110 S. Ct. 2404}: the Constitution need not be mutilated to preserve the government 's speech and property interests in the flag.” Although the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in a 7-3 majority that flag burning constitutes symbolic speech, which is protected under the first amendment, there should be a law banning the desecration of the American flag, instead of allowing it. The first amendment was used to allow the desecration of the American flag in the cases Texas v.
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Johnson and United States v. Eichman. In Douglas Kmiec 's article, he says, "The anti-flag outcome of both cases triggered widespread and sincere outrage on the part of the American public and equally insincere partisanship by some of its elected officials." A majority of American people strongly disagreed with the rulings in both cases and what the rulings were based upon. When the U.S. Supreme Court made their decision they did not take into consideration that without any form of communication accompanying the action of burning the American flag, there would be no need to allow the burning of the American flag legal using the first amendment. Lewis says, "Congress should have the authority to protect those things that are special to us as a people." The American flag is an important symbol to most nationalistic and patriotic Americans, so it should be protected. Patriotism has a lot to do with how people view the topic of burning the American flag. If someone does not feel any kind of attachment for their country, then they most likely will not care about what happens to that country 's ensign. According to Webster, "The literature on patriotism and nationalism is immense, colorful, and at times contentious, including perspectives from political science, sociology, history, and geography." The emotional attachment one feels for their country can often be seen in different ways, but one thing that does not differ is the respect they have for the American flag. The American flag is an inanimate object that has a lot of significance to America as an independent nation, but a lot of people do not think that it has any bearing on the country. The flag is not a symbol that does not serve a purpose, but a symbol that is representational of the entire nation, and all of it successes and failures. The American flag is a form of communication for Americans all over the country, even of they may not know each other. Tragedy 's happen all of the time, and during times of tragedy Americans are supposed to fly their flags at half-staff in honor of the lives that were lost because of it. Since the flag is used as a form of communication between Americans, those that believe the American flag should be allowed to be burned would say that is considered a form of speech. Although, the U.S. Supreme Court allowed the flag to be burned because of free speech, it should not have been because a form of communication is completely different than burning the American flag without any regards as to why. Those opposed to there being a law put into effect
Johnson and United States v. Eichman. In Douglas Kmiec 's article, he says, "The anti-flag outcome of both cases triggered widespread and sincere outrage on the part of the American public and equally insincere partisanship by some of its elected officials." A majority of American people strongly disagreed with the rulings in both cases and what the rulings were based upon. When the U.S. Supreme Court made their decision they did not take into consideration that without any form of communication accompanying the action of burning the American flag, there would be no need to allow the burning of the American flag legal using the first amendment. Lewis says, "Congress should have the authority to protect those things that are special to us as a people." The American flag is an important symbol to most nationalistic and patriotic Americans, so it should be protected. Patriotism has a lot to do with how people view the topic of burning the American flag. If someone does not feel any kind of attachment for their country, then they most likely will not care about what happens to that country 's ensign. According to Webster, "The literature on patriotism and nationalism is immense, colorful, and at times contentious, including perspectives from political science, sociology, history, and geography." The emotional attachment one feels for their country can often be seen in different ways, but one thing that does not differ is the respect they have for the American flag. The American flag is an inanimate object that has a lot of significance to America as an independent nation, but a lot of people do not think that it has any bearing on the country. The flag is not a symbol that does not serve a purpose, but a symbol that is representational of the entire nation, and all of it successes and failures. The American flag is a form of communication for Americans all over the country, even of they may not know each other. Tragedy 's happen all of the time, and during times of tragedy Americans are supposed to fly their flags at half-staff in honor of the lives that were lost because of it. Since the flag is used as a form of communication between Americans, those that believe the American flag should be allowed to be burned would say that is considered a form of speech. Although, the U.S. Supreme Court allowed the flag to be burned because of free speech, it should not have been because a form of communication is completely different than burning the American flag without any regards as to why. Those opposed to there being a law put into effect